To Slide or Not to Slide...

I agree with you as long as R1 did cause contact or alter the actions of the fielder.

My only quibble is that the location of BR is irrelevant. 

SwampBoy,

Thanks for the reply.  The location of the BR was important to me because "no play, no call" as he was already safely at 1B.  

--Bill

Except that on a force play slide rule violation the location of BR doesn't matter.

I had a play on which the SS fielded a ball deep in the 5-6 hole, moving toward 3B. His only play was to attempt the force at second. The second baseman fielded the throw like a first baseman, right foot on the bag, left arm extended to receive the throw. R1 beat the throw but slid past the bag and initiated contact with the second baseman beyond the bag.

The contact made the slide illegal. And because it was a force play--not a force out, but a play on a runner forced to vacate his base--that illegal slide invoked the force play slide rule and made both R1 and the BR out for the interference. 

BR was probably already at or beyond first base--I don't know for sure because I was watching the play at second--but it didn't matter. Second baseman didn't attempt a throw or look like he would have attempted a throw if not for the interference. None of that mattered. It was a force play. It was an illegal slide. R1 and BR were out. It's harsh, but that's the rule.

So yeah, you probably got your play right, but if it had been interference, you'd have been obliged to declare the BR out, too, even though he was beyond the base.

Bill Townsend posted:

 I get that, but runners are never required to slide.

Correct -- but if they don't slide they must run in a direction away from the play.   That can include running straight through the base if the fielder moves off the base -- that was your play.

I agree with swampboy that BR's location doesn't matter -- somewhere (and it might be NCAA, who has a similar rule *except* NCAA allows pop-up slides on the base and sliding through the base), there are words to the effect of "the location of the BR, whether BR would have been safe or out, and whether the defense attempts a play are not factors in making this call."

You definitely don't need to slide but you can't obstruct the fielder (for example in a double play) or just barrel him over.

Dominik85 posted:

You definitely don't need to slide but you can't obstruct the fielder

Of course you can't -- it's impossible for the offense to obstruct the defense.

Rule 8-4-2g If a retired runner interferes, and in the JUDGEMENT of the umpire, another runner could have been put out, the umpire shall declare that runner out. Your judgement was the the BR was past 1st base...you are correct. But if another runner could have been put out (maybe a bases loaded situation) If the umpire is uncertain who would have been played on, the runner closest to home plate shall be called out.